The Merchant's Mark

My husband and I find this series an dependably interesting treat. The sense of time and place adds to a good story.

"Gripping" is not the word I'd use to describe Pat McIntosh's third Gil Cunningham historical mystery, "The Merchant's Mark." However, to give Ms McIntosh her due, the series, including the latest has some strong, positive marks. It's a series that I have found worth the time and effort. And, yes, there is a bit of an effort in that the author's use of the 15th century (one assumes) vernacular makes the story not so gripping but ofttimes a pain. Hint to Ms McIntosh: your American readers, if you desire them, have difficulty with all that local jargon. Perhaps you might wish to lighten up a bit, even for your own modern British readers. Still, this reader puts aside this objection and is able to follow the plot anyway. At the onset, Gil is summoned by neighbor and fellow citizen Augie Morison to open up his latest shipment, which is meant to have included a load of books they've ordered. Lo and behold, when the barrel is opened they find not a book but a head in brine, accompanied by some treasure! Due to various circumstances, which the author rushes to include in order to advance her plot, the owner of the shipment Augie is summarily indicted for the murder. Of course, Gil, his fiance Alys, his crippled sister Kate, his future father in law Pierre, and eventually even the king of Scotland, James IV, get into the act and McIntosh's plot is off and running. The book has its moments, certainly spell-binding and suspenseful moments, but this reader would prefer a good mystery just to stay a good mystery (and this one is) and he doesn't need the romantic subplots and sentamentality that the author is prone to include. This isn't to take away from the author's respected ability to write a good yarn--it's just that this reader would prefer his myteries straight up, or "neat," as the Scots would say--and without the Martha Grimes little girls (sigh). Still, all that aside, believe it or not, "The Merchant's Mark" is worth reading and I look forward to the next installment, as we've yet to see the wedding and to see how Gil's promotion turns out. Stay tuned!

The Gil Cunningham mysteries give me what I like best: a cast of strong, likeable characters, and a convincing entree to another time and place. Gil's forceful sister Kate, and her devoted serving woman Babb are welcome additions to the cast of characters. The story is set during the reign of James IV (1488 - 1513). Gil's upperclass family took a fall when his father and brothers fought and died for the losing side, James III, in a civil war. Gil has had to struggle to establish himself well-enough to marry his beloved Alys, daughter of a French master mason. In this book, a close friend is arrested for murder; Gil and his other friends, are determined to clear him. The case proves to have complicated political ramifications, in addition to simple greed. His investigations take him as far as the royal court and a meeting with James IV. These are somewhat challenging mysteries. McIntosh uses a lot of Scots words; it is almost always clear enough what they mean, although I enjoy looking up precise meanings later. The plots are quite complex, with multiple sides and ambiguous characters. This is the sort of series that I think is worth rereading from time to time. Looking forward to the next! First book in the series: The Harper's Quine: A Medieval Murder Mystery